At the Old Village

[Saffron]

Strangers would never believe that just a fortnight ago, this was a small, quiet village. Now, many refugees from Kierkgard find shelter in some of the abandoned houses, driven out of the Field of Freca from the cold rain.

Even now, the ground is damp from the recent shower, making it difficult for people to camp out in the open - especially for those who had become accustomed to the comfortable life in the houses of Kierkgard.

Even more worrisome than the weather is the shortage of food. The people of Kierkgard had gotten accustomed to buying their food from the market, not hunt and gather. Although about a quarter of the population had left to go join their relatives, others, not knowing what to do, remain, wondering what to do next.

Saffron walks through the Old Village with a tattered shawl over her head. The sun is about to set and already, stars can be seen in the sky.

[Brev]

Brev steps into view, a hare on his shoulder tonight, though from the looks of it the beast was old and skinny and will probably be tough. Not ideal provender to feed an army - but food is getting scarcer round here, even for those who do know how to find it. He eyes the thread of smoke coming from one of those not-so-abandoned houses, then the road ahead, and hesitates.

[Carac]

Carac is also amongst those milling about the Old Village, he stops and speaks with many of the people as if searching for something or someone. Since he continues onwards, it seems the object of his search is not to be found and eventually he comes to the edge of the road and sinks to a seated position along the side of the road.

[Brev]

Brev\'s gaze falls on the seated figure, and his hesitation continues a moment longer then with a grunt of distaste he moves toward it. \"There\'s better places to sleep than here,\" he informs it roughly. \"Need a ha-\" The words break off as he comes close enough to identify the one he\'s speaking to. \"Carac?\" Blank surprise wipes away the rough edges from his voice.

[Carac]

Carac rubs a hand across his tired eyes and offers Brev something akin to a smile, but there\'s no humor in his eyes. \"Brev,\" he says flatly. \"Well,\" he says then and turns his gaze towards the ravine and the dark smoke of Kierkgard above. \"We managed to take the city.\" He sighs and shakes his head. \"But fire?\"

He chuckles and shakes his head once again. \"I should have known. It is always fire.\"

[Saffron]

Saffron slows her pace by the two young men. She sticks her hand out, palm up, then looks up at the heavens.

\"And the rain. Always rain when we don\'t want it, never a drop when we need one.\" She looks over the sea of tired people, damp and hungry. \"Sounds like the Chieftain and the nobles.\"

[Brev]

Brev glances toward the ravaged city for only a moment, and shrugs. \"Better fire than the worm that hollows out men\'s hearts and steals away their courage,\" is his own assessment. At Saffron\'s words he lets out a snort. \"It\'s only rain. I\'d have thought you\'d weathered enough summers to get used to it by now.\" Ah, there\'s nothing like a compliment from a young man.

He goes on briskly though, \"Their grain lies in ashes. So the ones who can travel need to find some elsewhere.\" He sweeps out his free arm in a wide arc, though it is southwards that his gaze slips, a tight little smile on his lips. \"And the rest need better shelter than here. They\'ll expect their saviour to provide it, you know.\" His tone is only faintly mocking.

[Carac]

Carac takes a deep breath and then nods. \"Aye, I know they their waiting on me or someone else to tell them what is next,\" he says. \"They are so used to be controlled by others that they are unable to think for themselves.\"

He too looks off towards the south now. \"We can not stay here,\" he says. Then turning to look at Saffron adds. \"The Ceanni will hear of Kierkgard soon enough, here we are defenseless should they wish to attack.\"

Eyes then turn back south. \"Iolair I think is where we should head. I hear that it\'s become an outpost for the Guardians in recent years, so we may have to capture it from them, but there can not be many there.\"

[Saffron]

Saffron shakes her head slowly with an exasperated sigh.

\"Take Iolair! I hope that when you say \"We\" you mean the men of your clan. I am no warrior. Until yesterday, I was merely the old maid who looked after chickens and other women\'s children when they went to work. Besides, I have weathered too many summers to be of much use in battle,\" she shoots a glance at Brev before continuing.

\"I see that the able-bodied men who stormed the gates of Kierkgard with you have left, now that the city has been picked clean.\"

[Brev]

Brev\'s mouth quirks. \"Glad to see you\'ve been thinking,\" is his comment when Carac\'s words end. \"It\'ll save me the trouble of doing it in future. From what I\'ve seen the place has fallen into disuse lately, only a light garrison there last time I passed through. The hall\'s still serviceable, and the smithy ... \'Course, there\'s no telling what\'s been happening there these last days. Trust you\'ll know,\" he ends warily, glancing at Saffron and not elaborating.

For her he has another snort. \"Maybe we won\'t need to take Iolair. If those who hold it are true guardians, won\'t they want to shelter the people in need?\" The tilt of his eyebrows hints at irony. \"Kiern preserve me from any Dunlending who isn\'t willing to fight. Even a woman can swing a blade. Don\'t you have a carving knife?\" He blows the hair out of his eyes, and contempt is clear in his gaze.

[Carac]

Carac glances around and then looks to Saffron and chuckles. \"Do not believe that those who helped free Kierkgard have forgotten there is further to go in this fight,\" he says. \"When it is time to move on they shall return, and we will continue to awaken the people of Dunland to the truths around them.\"

He scrubs a hand through his hair and turns completely south now. \"We must move quickly if we are to seize Iolair,\" he says. \"I expect both Wulf and Bear will be thinking on how significant it is to their own borders and interests.\"

[Saffron]

\"Not everyone is drunk with their newfound freedom, boys,\" the older woman emphasizes the last word. \"I was doing just fine, selling my eggs, living in safety. A woman living alone without fear. Yes, I paid tribute but what is the difference between sacrificing a few coins to a Chieftain who cares not a whit about you and sacrificing your freedom to a worthless husband? They both provide me protection but at least, I do not have to look at a Chieftain\'s face every night.\"

She turns her face to Brev. \"Swing a blade? I have never had a use for such things. A carving knife? Well now that all my chickens have been stolen and eaten, I don\'t need one of those either.\"

[Brev]

Brev eyes Carac sidelong. \"But not Stag?\" He hoists the hare a little higher on his shoulder, apparently unconcerned.

He gives Saffron a scowl of utter disgust. \"You\'re not telling me you\'ve never readied a chicken for the pot, are you? Then you know how to use a knife. And without one, how do you expect to eat? There\'s no handouts now, those who\'re fit and able have to feed themselves.\" He jerks his chin toward the hare, then adds savagely, \"My own mother died with a blade in her hand, and proud to wield it. Words like yours would shame her.\"

[Carac]

\"We fight for the right to raise chickens and sell our eggs without having to marry ourselves to Ceanni or husbands,\" Carac replies. \"Come with us to Iolair, help in freeing it for our cause and I will personally replace the chickens you have lost,\" he says with a grin.

He then looks at Brev and gives a slight shrug. \"The Stag may wish to grab it for sure,\" he replies. \"They however have a farther ride than Wulf or Bear, word will be reaching all the Ceanni soon enough. It may be a race from there to see who reaches Iolair first.\"

[Saffron]

\"What are my chickens to you, and your mother to me? Your mother did not wield a blade and die for me. She did it for you.\" Saffron says matter of factly.

\"We fight for the right to raise chickens and sell our eggs without having to marry ourselves to Ceanni or husbands,\" Saffron repeats Carac\'s words slowly. \"Funny. That\'s exactly what I had until a fortnight ago.\"

But her words are interrupted by a ruckus that erupts in the outskirts of the Old Village. \"We caught some traitors!\"

[Brev]

Brev absorbs Carac\'s words silently, but when Saffron starts to speak he gives a rough chuckle. \"Maybe some of us fight for the right not to raise chickens. Though I\'ve built coops for enough of them.\"

At the shouts he turns his head, then snorts. \"Guess I\'d better be getting this back to camp.\" He does not seem overly interested in the infighting for the present. \"Be seeing you.\" And with that he\'s away, stepping lightly through the mud.

[Carac]

\"You paid tribute to a Ceann,\" Carac says. \"You said it yourself. What right does a Ceann have to a portion of your earnings?\" He turns to lift a hand and wish Brev a good day.

He turns back to Saffron then and begins where he left off. \"Do you not wish . . .\" this time his speech is interupted by the cries coming from the outskirts. \"Kiern be damned . . .\" he mutters and then moves towards the sound of the voices.

\"Who\'s it you\'ve caught?\"

[Saffron]

The two are held in a kneeling position, hunched over and head held down with a knee digging cruelly in their backs.  Each time one of them tries to lift his head, he is beaten and kicked down into submission.  The cluster of men who caught them are busy patting each other on the back.

“Carac!” One of the captors looks up excitedly as the young man approaches.  “We caught these two sneakin around, listenin and watchin us.  I bet you my last drink that they’re dogs for them nobles who escaped!”

[Carac]

Carac looks towards the two hunched figures. \"Perhaps,\" he says to the young man who speaks to him. \"Or perhaps not, but we\'ll never know if you all kick a hole in them first, will we?\" He reaches out towards a spear one of the guards hold and levels the head towards the face of the captive on the left.

He motions the men off him with a nod of his head. \"What have you to say for yourself?\" he asks keeping the spear head at eye level.

[Saffron]

The captors’ grip on the one on the right loosens as well when Carac begins the interrogation.  As soon as he feels the slight slack, the captive on the right tries to make a desperate escape.

The other with a spear pointed to his face cries out “We’re not doin nothin!  We were just.. we were just hungry is all!”

The sun has dipped below the horizon, and it is difficult to see, so one of the captors squints and draws close to his face.  When he recognizes him, the captor pulls away with disgust.

“I know him.  He’s the li’l runt who runs errands for the fat cow married to Fian Baodan.” He looks at Carac.  “I say we kill him now.”

[Carac]

Carac presses the spear point in closer at the captives. \"So you are thieves,\" he says angrily. \"Skulkin\' about the shadows lookin\' for a chance to steal the last crumb from those already picked clean!\" Carac cocks the spear back preparing for a killing thrust, but the words of the captor stay the blow.

\"Fian Baodan?\" he asks. \"What clan is this?\" The spear is now returned to a guarded position, its point one more leveled on the captive.

[Saffron]

“Fian, my arse!  I’ve wanted to get my hands on that bloated pig farmer for years now!” A burly man knocks and shoves the onlookers aside to get to the captive.  When he does, he smashes his fist into his face.  “Since he’s not here, I’ll smash YOU!”  Only a faint attempt is made to restrain the attacker who continues to pulverize the captive with his fists.

“Baodan was a pig farmer who somehow was bestowed the title of a nobility.  We don’t know how or why.  He used to be a Bear but when we woke up one mornin’ he was a noble of Wulf.”

The young hunter explains as the angry man continues to pound on Baodan’s man.

“That there’s Angus.  Don’t blame him for bein’ mad.  Baodan took a likin’ to his daughter and the daughter wouldn’t have him.  Last spring, they found her body at the bottom of the ravine.  Nobody knows if Baodan did it but can’t blame Angus for bein’ mad.”

[Carac]

\"Enough!\" Carac commands. \"He\'ll have no value to us at all if he\'s dead.\" He moves towards Angus and puts a hand on his shoulder. \"Save your anger for this Baodan,\" he says.

He turns to the hunter. \"And this man here?\" he asks. \"Who is he and what value does he have to this Pig of Wulf?\"

[Saffron]

Angus is forcibly pulled off of the curled up cur by no less than three men, though the big man can’t help but spit at him as a parting shot.

The hunter rubs his chin thoughtfully at the badly beaten man.  “Well.. supposedly, this feller had a pretty face and kept Baodan’s pig wife entertained, so that Baodan himself would be free to go about chasin’..” he glances at Angus and his words trail off.  “Anyways, I see no use for him or his friend.  It is no secret that we took Kierkgard.  If these two don’t come back, they’ll think we killed him.  Why? You see a use for them?”

The hunter makes eye contact with Carac.  “By the way, name’s Cailean.  I heard about the revolt.  Thought you could use a hand but I see you’ve managed to do just fine.”  He smiles.

[Carac]

Carac\'s eyes move from Cailean to Angus and back. \"Perhaps,\" he says after a moment. \"If this Baodan wishes to keep his wife entertained then might be we can ransom the man back to him. I don\'t know about you, but I\'ve a liking for bacon,\" he adds with a grin. He looks from Angus to Cailean once more. \"Tie him up and have him put with the other captives,\" he says.

Carac reaches for the waterskin at his hip, uncorks it and takes a long drink. \"So, Cailean,\" he says as he replaces skin. \"How is it you know so much about this Baodan and the other\'s?\"

[Saffron]

“I don’t blame ye for bein’ suspicious.” Cailean unslings his bow and sits down.  “These are bad times.  You’ve been gone for a bit, I hear.  So you probably don’t know.  Neighbors suspicious of neighbors.  That’s how they stay in power, those rotten nobles.”

“We, well my brothers and me – we detested Baodan when he was a pig farmer outside the city.  He blamed us for a couple of missing pigs,” he grins bitterly.  “Then when he became Fian, he said something to the Chieftain and he threw our family off our land and gave it to another family.  I tried to get our neighbors to speak on our behalf to the Chieftain, but they were scared silent by Baodan.  So me an’ my brother’s been huntin’ to keep the family alive.”

[Carac]

Carac looks towards the south for several moments. \"I have been mulling over where it is that we should move to from here,\" he says after a moment. \"The need for food, and now your tale . . .\" he nods. \"It is south we must go. Iolair is the gateway to Redvyrne and the herds and farmlands of the Wulf.\"

Confidence and determination returning to him Carac turns to face the hunter. \"Tell me, Cailean have you been through Iolair of late?\"